The Past is a State of Mind
by NotDeniseDonovan
Summary: When the Starkids run into an old friend, it's not all happy reunions and kisses. The rehersals for Twisted go from being a dream, to a nightmare.
1. Chapter 1

"Damnit, am I the only one that can see the layer of grime over everything?" Jeff asked angrily and his friends looked up at him.

"Yes, Jeff," Denise said. "You are," Joe, who had his arm around the blonde smirked.

"Man, you need to chill," Brian said from the floor. Brian was looking up at Meredith, who was playing with Jade's hair. Eric came from the kitchen and handed Nick the bottle of water he asked for.

"You shouldn't be so nervous," Lauren said. "If you like her, we like her too." She said and next to her, Joey nodded.

"The only thing you need to worry about, is if she hates us," Chris laughed and Jeff shot him a look.

"Why did we have to wait this long to meet her anyway?" Dylan asked.

"She was touring," Jeff said. "She was in the national tour for Bonnie and Clyde," he said and Rachael grinned.

"Did she play Clyde?" Rachael teased and Denise laughed.

"Funny," Jeff said, not smiling. "Seriously, just be nice to her, okay?" Jeff asked. "I really like her, and I don't want to mess this up," he said and the group nodded.

"Don't worry," Nick said coming downstairs, followed by Matt. "I hear you guys video chatting every night, no girl would do that if she didn't like you."

"That's very true," Denise pointed out. "If she didn't like you, she wouldn't bother. Especially with how stressed she must be with the shows."

"Okay here's a question," Rachael said, sitting up straighter. "Who decided the best course of action was for forty of us to bombard her?" Jeff shrugged.

"She said she wanted to meet you guys, you know? Just get it done all at once." Jeff stopped talking at the sound of the doorbell. A few smiles were exchanged and Jeff went to get the door. He greeted her there, he smiled and hugged her, giving her a short kiss. "Your hair looks great in the sun," he told her and she laughed. Her red hair shined like a copper crown around her head, soft curls framing her round face.

"Your beard scruff tickles when you kiss me," she told him and he wrinkled his nose.

"Is that a good thing, or a bad thing?" He asked and she laughed.

"Good thing, definitely." Jeff chuckled slightly, and took her hand, leading her inside.

"Guys," he said getting everyone's attention. "This is Penny Lane," he said and presented the blue eyed China-doll he'd been fawning over for the past month.

The next ten seconds were a blur for everyone who didn't already know the girl.

Lauren stood up, Brian's eyes bulged, and Meredith threw a hand over her mouth. Dylan's mouth dropped open, the Langs each took a step back. Joe pulled away from Denise, Joey stood up and walked quickly out of the room. Julia froze where she was, and Jaime had to keep herself from crying out in shock at the sight of the woman in front of them.

"Hey bitches," Penny greeted. "So which one of you is going to pay me my $20,000?" She asked, to the confusion of Jeff, Denise, Rachael, and Chris. Lauren was the first to speak, but she spoke what everyone was thinking.

"Oh fucking Hell."


	2. Chapter 2

**Five Years Ago**

Darren sat on his bed, if you could call a mattress thrown on the floor and shoved against a wall a bed, strumming his guitar. Penny was hanging out the window, smoking, hoping to keep the smell from bothering the curly haired boy she loved so much.

"What's your favorite song from Rent?" He asked her curiously.

"What?" She asked, looking back at him and he shrugged. "Guess," she told him and he smiled.

"You're a huge Mimi fan, so I want to Say 'Out Tonight', but that's too obvious, isn't it?" Darren asked and Penelope laughed.

"That's very true, points for that," she said flicking ash out the window and taking one last drag.

"My next guess would be 'One Song Glory', because that song just fucking rocks, period." Darren said, his fingers still plucking at the guitar. Penny shut the window and turned to him. "But that's everyone's favorite and you're a special snowflake so it's not your favorite," he said and she nodded.

"I am the most special snowflake," she said and he nodded, he knew.

"So, final answer, I'm gonna lock in 'What You Own'." Penny thought for a moment and sat on the bed and shook her head.

"No, but super close," she said and took the guitar from him. She strummed out a few chords and Darren watched her curiously.

"It's true," she began singing gently. "You sold you guitar, and bought..a car?"

"Goodbye Love is not your favorite," he said and she laughed at him.

"It is!" She swore. "It just switches so quick, back and forth, from melancholy, to angry and mean, to sad and regretful, then to this whole bit pity party, I love it." Darren shook his head and took his guitar back. He was leaning against the wall, just playing. Penny laid her head down and watched him think. His friends, their friends, always made jokes about how there was never anything going on in there, but Penny knew. Penny saw. He was always thinking, about one thing or another. He had a great mind, you just had to be around at the right time.

"What's the time?" He began to sing softly, and Penny laughed. "Well it's gotta be close to midnight." Though 'Goodbye Love' is her favorite, 'Out Tonight' holds a certain type of anthem-status, in her head. "Uhh, something-something, yada yada, blah blah, let's go, out tonight!" Darren sang, not knowing the lyrics to more than half the song.

"You only know the first line and one line from the chorus?" Penny asked, incredulously, laughing at him.

"Am I supposed to know everything?" He demanded, with a huge grin on his face. "Seriously though, let's go out and do something tonight," he said and she shook her head.

"No can do, baby doll," she told him. "I have to work, I actually should leave in a few minutes." She said and sighed sadly. Darren wrinkled his nose and set his guitar aside, moving to lay his head down next to hers, facing her.

"I don't want you to go," he said and she smiled gently.

"I don't want to go either," she said and he leaned in, he knew she was hesitant about affection, so he kissed her forehead, not her lips.

"We wrote absolutely nothing today," he said and she laughed.

"This is what happens when AJ says we're good on our own," she told him and he laughed. "Maybe the pain of me not being here will inspire you," she said kissing his cheek and sitting up. "Write something and come serenade me when I'm all alone in my dorm tonight," she said and laughed.

"Baby, you'll never be alone as long as I can help it," he swore and she smiled.

"Good, that's what I like to hear." She walked from the room, picking up her jacket and shoes from wherever she'd strewn them.

"Bundle up," Darren called, back to strumming the guitar. "You won't be nearly as cute when your nose falls off," she laughed and turned to call back at him.

"But then I have an excuse to take Joe's part in the musical!"

"We only have two songs, it's not really a 'musical' at this point yet," he said and she rolled her eyes.

"Then get to work, Daisy!" In his room, Darren rolled his eyes, regretting that he ever let Penny meet his brother.

"I'm gonna punch Chuck for telling you about that," he said as she opened the front door.

"You shouldn't, it's cute. When we have babies, we'll name our daughter Daisy," she said teasingly.

"I'm gonna hold you to that," and with a final laugh she shut the door and headed back to her dorm so she could change for work.


	3. Chapter 3

**Present Day**

It was chaos. It was like Mean Girls, pure jungle madness. Lauren was yelling, and Denise was trying to calm her, Joe had run off to find Joey, Brian and the Langs were accusing, Rachael sat next to Chris, her nails digging into his arm, neither was sure what to do. Meredith, Jaime, and Julia sat in shock, none of them willing to get involved until everyone had calmed down.

"We owe you nothing!" Brian yelled at her and Penny rolled her eyes and crossed her arms.

"Except a swift kick in the ass," Lauren added angrily.

"I'm going by the contract you had me sign!" Penny snapped at them. "The contract clearly states that I'm to be compensated for all my contributions to the company," she told them, and for a short moment, there was silence.

"What contributions?" Jeff asked, and Penny turned around to look at him, her face softer than it had been a moment ago.

"I spent a year at Michigan," she admitted to him. "While I was there I wrote a lot of music for the Harry Potter musicals, Me and My Dick, a few that were used in Starship. I worked with Darren, and AJ, Joe, Nick and Matt, Brian," as she named them off she looked around and watched them all shift their eyes down, away from her gaze. "Darren said I was their muse," she said and everyone in the room silently watched Jeff's face twist from confusion, to understanding, to anger.

"You never told me-," he started. "You never said anything!" He said and she nodded.

"I never talk to anyone about it," she told him. "It was a period in my life, and when I left I left it behind."

"Oh please!" Lauren shouted. "You sought him out, didn't you? You wanted to get back at us!" She snapped and Penny turned around confused.

"If I wanted to get back at you I'd sue you, which I'm not doing. I'm not here to be a villain, I want what's owed to me."

"We paid you," Nick shouted at her and Penny shook her head.

"The contract says I'm to get compensated everytime my songs are used, you kept up with the payments until about three years ago, since then I've received nothing, and in that time you've gone on two national tours and performed several of my songs, as well as used them in your shows." She told them.

"We're not going to pay you anything, Penny Lane," Brian said. "The contract says we pay you as long as the shows are going, but afterwards, we owe you nothing."

"No it doesn't," she told him. "I don't know who you got to write this shit out, but I want them writing any contract I ever need," she said. "Basically," she said and walked away from the group, and sitting in a chair. She was exhausted, and she hated yelling, but it was the only way she would get through to anyone. "If the contract is breached, like it was, it says that Brian's stake in the company will be forfeited to me." Brian, Lauren, and the Langs began to protest, Penny just held up a hand. "And with the money that had been withheld, I have the ability to buy others out. And with $20,000, I can buy both of you out," she said signalling to Nick and Matt. "Then, I guess the company would be just Darren and I, like it was originally meant to be.." She said, her lips in a tight line.

"There is no way that's what it said," Brian said and Penny shrugged, reaching into her bag. She pulled a worn packet of paper and flipped a few pages in.

"'I, Brian Holden,' that's your signature, 'hereby agree that in the result the aforementioned agreements and perimeters are breached, my stock in 'StarkidPotter Productions', will be transferred to Penelople Lane', that's me." She told him. "I can keep reading, but you all have your own copies. I remember because I almost missed my flight because I was signing all this shit," she said. Across the room, Brian sat down hard. He knew she was right, and the room was silent.

"What do you want?" Brian asked softly, looking up.

"Like I said," Penny said gently. "I'm not here to be a villain," she told them. "I'm not even here for the money, honestly." She said and Lauren rolled her eyes.

"What are you here for then?" Everyone waited in anticipation for her answer.

"Jeff," she said and looked up at him. He crossed his arms and looked at his feet. "But also, because I own the rights to your show," she said and everyone quickly resumed their yelling at her.

"Darren wrote the synopsis," Matt said. "He gave it to us."

"No," Penny said. "I wrote it," there was another long silence while everyone exchanged confused glances. "I'm not blaming you," she said. "Which is why I'm not going to pursue anything legally, but I do want what is owed to me. I want to be a producer," she said and Brian shook his head.

"No, because I don't believe you," Brian said and Lauren nodded in agreement.

"I can bring all the proper paperwork and prove that the synopsis Darren gave you, was my property." Brian looked at Nick and Matt, and they nodded.

"If you can prove it, we'll talk, but until then-," Brian was cut off by Lauren.

"That's bullshit!" She shouted. "You're just gonna forgive her for everything?" Lauren asked and Penny sighed.

"I'm not the demon you make me out to be," she said and Lauren rolled her eyes.

"Fuck this, fuck you, fuck off," she snapped and grabbed her coat, heading out the door. Julia and Jaime followed quickly, hoping to catch Lauren before she did something stupid.

"I'm going to go," Penny said standing up. "Jeff can give you my number, we'll talk tomorrow," she said and walked towards the front door. She stopped by Jeff and took his hand.

"Do you wanna come with me? Or do you wanna take some alone time, to think?" She asked. He sighed and looked around at his friends.

"I'll come over later," he said gently softly and kissed her forehead. She smiled and nodded, then left the house, knowing her life for the next few months would be total Hell, but in the end, worth it.


	4. Chapter 4

**Five Years Ago**

Penny laid on her bed, stoned and smiling to herself. She had Bon Jovi playing too loud, so she didn't hear the door open. AJ walked in, and immediately knew what she was doing.

"You shouldn't do that shit," he said with a smile and Penny laughed.

"Shut up and come take a hit," she told him. He happily sat next to her on her bed and took the joint from her.

"I brought some snacks," he told her and she sat up and took the plastic bag from him, going through it.

"We need to write another song," she reminded him absently and he nodded. "I wrote something last night if you wanna hear it," she said and he nodded again.

"Of course I wanna hear it," he told her and she smiled.

"I don't think it'll fit into Harry Potter, but maybe I'll play it for someone and they'll write a whole show for me just to use it," she teased and AJ smiled, watching her. She stood up and found her keyboard, then began playing.

_'Wait, don't go.' She began to sing softly. _

_'There's something I need you to know.'_

_'Just wait, give me a minute. Won't you stay?' _AJ watched her curiously.

_'I feel so much better, when you are right here.'_

_'Even though I was blind before, I realize there is so much more. It was always deep down in the core of me. Even though it seems to much to take, there's a feeling I can't seem to shake. I feel like I am beating the signs, cause I'm coming around.' _

_'I thought I wanted someone who was perfect as could be, turns out I just needed one who was perfect for me.' Penny stopped playing and looked up at AJ who was still eyeing her adoringly. _

"Who was in your head when you wrote that?" He asked and she smiled, walking away from the keyboard, throwing herself back on her bed.

"The Langs," she said he laughed. "Think they could make a story out of that?" She asked and AJ nodded.

"No doubt," he said. "Their creativity knows no bounds," he said and she nodded. She gave a big sigh and moved to lay her head in his lap.

"I wrote a love song for myself," she told him and he looked down at her, his hand moving to run through her curly red hair.

"Why'd you do that?" He asked her and she shrugged.

"Because you haven't gotten around to it yet," she said and he smiled. He leaned down to kiss her, and she kissed him back. That's where he stopped though, he knew how she got when she was high, and he refused to take advantage of that.

"I'll get right on that," he told her and she smiled, shutting her eyes.

"Keep playing with my hair," she told him and he obeyed happily.

"I'll really write you a love song," he told her and she smiled, her eyes still closed.

"I know you will," she said softly. AJ leaned down to peck her lips again, but stopped halfway when the door opened and Lauren walked in. "Hey L.L. Bean," Penny said sitting up. "If I had known you were coming back this early I would've opened the window," she said stood up to open the window.

"No worries," Lauren said moving to sit next to AJ. "Can I have a hit?" She asked and AJ passed her the joint. "Are you here to write pretty little songs?" Lauren asked and AJ nodded. "Can Draco have a song? I feel like Draco needs an angsty power ballad," Lauren said and Penny laughed.

"The last thing you need is more power," Penny said and gave a roll of her eyes.

"What does that mean?" Lauren asked and laughed, rifling through the bag of snack AJ had brought.

"You already have way too much power, everyone is wrapped around your pretty little finger, and you know it," Penny told the other woman. Lauren just laughed and moved from Penny's bed to her own.

"Forget my power complex, forget my power ballad. Get to work and write some sort of music. Nick is freaking out about not having all the songs," Lauren said and Penny nodded.

"Where are we at with the music breaks?" AJ asked and Penny flipped through her notes from the last session they'd had.

"Looks like we're at the Yule Ball," she said, her fingers playing along the keys.

"Scoot," he said and took her place, playing a soft tune. "You're Little Miss Lyricist," he told her. "So get singing," AJ teased with a smile.

"Here's your ballad, Lauren," Penny said and Lauren grinned.

They'd begun the song, working through the different parts, making Lauren sing absurd lyrics that no one would ever actually allow into the play, even if it was a parody. AJ's phone went off and he excused himself to go talk to his mom in peace.

"Did you really mean that?" Lauren asked. "About me having everyone wrapped around my fingers?" Penny looked up from her writing and watched Lauren for a moment.

"Yes," she said simply. "You don't see yourself, the way I do. Or the way Julia, or Jaime, or Darren, or Joe do. You're Lauren Lopez, and you're incredible." Lauren watched Penny for a long moment, before quickly jumping up from her bed to kiss Penny on the lips.

"Can we cuddle later? After AJ is gone?" Lauren asked. "I wanna kiss you some more," she said softly.

"We can do whatever you want," Penny said. Lauren smiled and sat back down on her own bed as AJ came in.

"What'd I miss?" He asked and Penny shrugged.

"Granger Danger," she said softly. "That'll be the chorus."

"That's perfect," AJ said happily and grabbed his notebook to write it down. Penny looked at Lauren and gave a quick wink, Lauren smiled and looked down at her textbook.


	5. Chapter 5

Present Day

Penny left the house and quickly ran to catch up with Lauren, Jaime, and Julia. They hadn't moved far, it seemed like Lauren had kept stopping to vent and yell.

"Lauren," Penny called and the trio of girls turned around. Penny's cheeks flushed red from the running and the windburn she was so used to at this point. "Lauren, can we talk for a second?" Lauren crossed her arms and set her lips in a tight line.

"Just get out of here, Penelope," Julia said and grabbed Lauren to turn and go. Penny plead with her eyes.

"Lauren, please," she said softly. After a moment Lauren looked down at the ground and nodded.

"I'll catch up with you guys in a minute, this won't take long." Jaime and Julia exchanged worried glances with each other, but they gave the two the space they asked for, and headed off to where Penny presumed their apartment was. "What do you want?" Lauren asked and Penny pursed her lips.

"You didn't tell them," Penny stated. "Any of them, about what we had."

"I thought you were gone forever," Lauren said simply. "I didn't think there was any point in bringing it up," she said and gave a shrug. "Besides, then they'd want me to explain and declare some sexuality, and why should I do that when it was a one time thing? A fluke, you know?" Lauren finished talking and Penny gave a small smile.

"You mean I'm the only girl you've ever been with?" She asked and gave a short laugh. Against her better judgment Lauren gave a short smile.

"Stop laughing at me," she said, and Penny immediately obliged. "Did you just want to mock my experience, or was there something else?" Penny nodded. She rifled through her bag and pulled out a packet of paper, then handed it to the other woman. "What is this?" She asked, flipping through it.

"A friend of mine is preparing a show, they're going to do an LA run, an off-Broadway run, and hopefully a Broadway run. He asked me to audition for one of the main roles, but I just can't grasp the character, but when he told me what kind of actress they were looking for, I thought of you." Lauren didn't say anything, she just looking through the packet. "It's a good character," Penny continued. "There's a solo song, pretty sad, but I think it'd be good for you."

"Heathers," Lauren said and Penny nodded.

"Like the 80's movie," Penny said. "You'd be auditioning for Heather Chandler." Lauren nodded and bit her lip.

"I'll look into it, just uh- send me the information," Lauren said and Penny nodded.

"Of course, I'll see you later then." Penny turned to walk away and Lauren groaned.

"Penny?" She called, and the redhead turned around to look at her.

"Yeah?"

"Thank you," Lauren said. "I've been trying to get into more serious acting, but it's kind of hard, you know?" Penny nodded her head.

"Good night, Pez," she said and Lauren nodded, then the two parted ways.


	6. Chapter 6

One Year Ago

Penny sat on the couch in the coffee shop, her music playing softly in her ears. Though she was on a couch, she still was sitting with her legs crossed, a notebook open in her lap. She had been trying to write for a while, but it'd been hard for her lately. She was stressed, and that was causing a block in her head when it came to anything, scripts, music, emails. She just felt utterly hopeless when it came to putting her ideas down. The music helped, partly, but not much. At this point she wasn't even trying to write anymore. Now she was just staring off into space, not really aware of anything going on around her. Which is probably the reason it took her so long to realize there was a man in front of her, trying to get her attention. Shocked, she jumped in her seat and reached up to take the headphones from her ears.

"I'm so sorry," she apologized with a smile. "I was in my own world," he just smiled and shook his head.

"I asked if you knew you'd been singing out loud," he said and her face flushed red.

"Was I really?" She asked shocked, and he nodded, still smiling. "Was I at least good?" She asked and he laughed out loud.

"Yeah, you were alright," he said and she nodded.

"Thank God, I have a show tonight and if I was shit I'd probably never get up there," she told him and he cocked an eyebrow.

"What show?" He asked curiously, sitting back against the couch.

"I'm in the National Tour for Bonnie & Clyde," she told him and his eyes widened slightly.

"Are you really?" He asked and she nodded, proud of herself.

"I've spent a lot of time doing a lot of things, but being on this tour kind of put me back in the right headspace.

"Headspace for what?" He asked with a grin and she shrugged.

"To get back to my music, my writing. I've been treading water for a while, but now I know I need to stop and take a breath before I continue." The man nodded, understanding what she meant.

"I know what you mean," he said. "I actually have a musical I've been working on for almost ten years and I still haven't done anything with it," he said and gave a short chuckle. "But I think it's almost ready," he said and she grinned.

"Well if you ever need a dramaturg," she said and laughed.

"I might just take you up on that," he said. "I'm Jeff," he finally introduced.

"Penny," she replied with a nod. She looked down at her watch and gave a sort of huff of anger. "I have to go," she told him. "Rehearsals and sound check," she explained.

"Oh well, uh, it was great meeting you," he said and began to stand up.

"I mean," Penny began, kind of rushed. "If you're not busy tonight, I could leave your name at the box office?" She offered. Jeff smiled down at her. "Then you could find me after the show, maybe we could get some dinner? Or drinks?" Jeff chuckled and nodded.

"Mind if I ask you to leave two?" He asked and she grinned.

"Only if you're not bringing a girl," Penny teased and Jeff shook his head.

"Don't worry your pretty little head about that," he said and she laughed.

"So two tickets for Jeff-...?" She let her words trail off, waiting for him to give her a last name.

"Blim," he said. "Jeff Blim."

"Jeff Blim," she repeated with a nod. Then she collected her things as quickly as she could, and ran out the door.


	7. Chapter 7

Present Day

"You have no right, you know," Meredith said and Penny turned around quickly, shocked.

"Jesus Meredith!" She exclaimed. After leaving Lauren, Penny had passed Nick and Matt's house again, to head back to her own apartment. Meredith had seen her, and felt it was her turn to get some answers.

"You have no right to be back here," Meredith said again.

"I have every right," Penny said. "If my work is being stolen, with no compensation, I have ever right."

"But do you really? What if this is just karma's way of biting you in the ass?" Meredith asked, her face hard. Penny watched Meredith sadly.

"Am I why you're acting like this?" She asked. "I've never seen you like this," Penny continued. "It's like someone broke your spirit."

"Stop it," Meredith said. "Right now, you've always been so good at manipulating, and I won't let you do that now." Penny moved her gaze from Meredith. Sometimes she didn't even know she was trying to manipulate someone. It wasn't harmful or toxic in anyway, but she used appeal to earn trust and forgiveness, it was part of her charm.

"Merry," Penny continued, using an old nickname. "I just want what's due to me, then I'll forget about the company forever."

"I don't care about the company," Meredith said. The street was almost empty, and it had recently rained. Penny could hear water dripping from the roof down to the pavement. "I want you to stay away from Jeff," Meredith said. "He deserves so much better, and all you'll give him is heartache." Penny pressed her lips together and shook her head.

"You're wrong," Penny said.

"History always repeats itself," Meredith countered and Penny couldn't help but laugh out loud.

"Merry, I have a Bachelors degree in History, I know history is bound to repeat itself, but this isn't what it was all those years ago. Those guys... I never committed to any of them. Not Darren, or AJ, or J-," Meredith cut her off.

"You're using him, you're using him to get back at us and that just isn't right. You're hurting so many people by being here," Meredith said. She didn't seem as angry anymore, now she just looked like she was going to cry. "It's going to happen again, every guy is going to want to kiss you, and you'll go around, one by one, breaking their hearts." Penny shut her eyes and shook her head.

"The place where I was, when I did that.." She sighed and opened her eyes. "I had just gotten out of-" Meredith cut her off again.

"It doesn't matter, I don't care." There was a long pause of silence, while neither knew what to say to the other. "Just try and not fuck him up, he's a good guy."

"I know he is," Penny said. "Which is why I'm dating him, something I didn't do with the other three men."

"No, you only slept with them," Meredith said and Penny rolled her eyes.

"I slept with four guys within one year, jeez I must be easy," Penny snapped sarcastically.

"That isn't what I meant and you know it," Meredith said and Penny shrugged.

"The point is, Meredith," Penny began. "I know Jeff is a great guy, and he's treated me so well, and I'm so head over heels for him it isn't even funny. It would have been a lot easier if his friends weren't capitalizing off of me, but we can't all have it as easy as you." Meredith sighed at Penny's words.

"No one ever said it was easy," then she turned and walked back towards the house. Penny groaned and dropped to the ground, her head in her hands.

"Hey," came a voice. Penny smiled because she knew the voice. It was the voice that had kept her awake way too late on Skype, and lulled her to sleep over the phone. She stood and walked into Jeff's open arms, craving closeness and affection. "So that didn't go as planned," he said and laughed gently.

"I'm sorry all your friends hate me," she said and the two of them laughed gently.

"They don't all hate you," he amended. "Rachael, Chris, they're willing to give you a chance," he said. "I thought Denise would side with me, but she's dating Joe so I'm not sure where she stands, really."

"Monogamy is good for Joe," Penny said, her voice muffled because her face was buried in his chest. "He was always too needy to not be tied down."

"Why didn't you tell me?" Jeff asked after a short moment of silence.

"Because I didn't know until about a week ago," she told him honestly.

"But even then, you've known for a week," he said.

"I didn't want to put any strain on us," she said. "I know it's been hard, I've been out of town, you've been busy with your writing, I didn't want any more reasons to stress and worry." He kissed the top of her head and sighed.

"I just want you to be honest, Penny Lane." He said and she pulled away from the hug, holding onto his hands.

"And I am honest, I lied by omission," she said and he chuckled. "I also lied when I said your friends seem like cool people," she said and he laughed again, louder this time. Still holding his hand, Penny headed down the road. "You're not mad?" She asked and he shook his head. He let go of her hand and wrapped that arm over her shoulders.

"We all have a past," he said. "A past filled to the brim with dirty secrets, and lies, and I'm not going to persecute you for that. This isn't King Henry's court, and you're not Anne Boleyn." Penny grinned and leaned into him.

"We could be," she told him. "We can do that for Halloween," she said and he nodded. "You kind of have the Henry hair," she said. "You're more strawberry-blonde, than golden-bronze curls, but it could still work." Jeff nodded, still smiling.

"And we could get you a nice wig and a corset," he said. Penny shook her head.

"Fun fact, I have several corsets stowed away in my apartment." Jeff raiseed his eyebrows at her.

"Oh really?" He asked, amused.

"I love costumes," she said with a smile.

"Will you dress up for me?" He asked her with a wink and she shook her head.

"Not tonight, it's a bitch to get all that stuff tied, and it's not nearly as easy to take off as movies would make it seem," she told him and he nodded. Jeff pulled Penny to a stop and she looked up at him, confused for a moment before he kissed her. "What was that for?" She asked and he shrugged.

"For what you said to Meredith," he told her softly.

"You heard that?" She asked, slightly embarrassed. Jeff admired her blushing cheeks and nodded.

"You're good too," he told her and she shrugged her shoulders.

"If I was good, I would've been honest, the moment I found out," she said.

"You had your reasons, I'm sure," he said and she shook her head.

"It was a shady move on my part," she said and pulled away from him. "And I bet that's what everyone in that house was trying to tell you."

"They were," Jeff said. "But I trust you, and your reasons. I understand why you're upset, and I want to help you."

"Help me how?" She asked him, confused.

"I don't know, but whatever you need, I'm your monkey. I'm on your side. You just need to tell me your plans."

"Plans?" She asked and shrugged. "I want to void the current contract, and draft a new one with input from the original six parties. Darren, AJ, Nick, Matt, Brian, and myself. All of us can contribute, and come to an agreement."

"You're not in it for the money?" Jeff asked, and Penny shook her head.

"I honestly just want the Producer credit on one of the shows, to fill in that gap on my resume." Jeff nodded, understanding.

"But why this show?"

"Because I wrote the idea for it," she told him and he set his jaw.

"Just don't think you have too much power," he said and she nodded. "Nothing is worse than someone who thinks they're greater than they are."

"I spent a year infatuated with Darren Criss," Penny said. "Trust me, I know all about giant egos."

**Leave some reviews and tell me what you think! Who do you think is the third guy? **


	8. Chapter 8

Five Years Ago

Penny walked into the music room, feeling a bit too much like Haruhi from Ouran Host Club.

"AJ?" She called. She wasn't usually first here, but she was never last. Darren was always last.

"Hey, I'm over here," AJ called sitting up. Penny smiled and walked over to him.

"What are you working on?" She asked and he grinned.

"I wrote a love song for you," he said happily and she rolled her eyes.

"You fucking didn't," she said and walked to the keyboard, her fingers running over he keys, warming up.

"I swear," he said. "Listen," he sat down at the piano and looked at Penny. She nodded, and he began to play. She listened to the first few measures then groaned. She crumpled up a piece of paper and threw it at him.

"First of all, that's Penny Lane by The Beatles. Second, you're not funny, people do that to me all the time." She crossed her arms and playfully huffed. AJ, at the piano, just laughed.

"I was kidding, Red." He told her and changed the tune he was playing, to a softer ballad, reminiscent of Billy Joels', She's Always a Woman to Me. He played, his fingers moving in perfect time, and soon enough he began to sing and it was beautiful, but it was also too much for her to handle.

"I-," she tried to say, but the words wouldn't come. "It's cool," she eventually said and stood up. She grabbed her bag and AJ watched her, confused. "I need to go, apologize to Darren and Carlos for me," she said and took off quickly. Her chest was tight and she wanted to cry, and vomit, and yell. It was too much, too fast. She leaned against a wall and tried to control her breathing. Her head was in her hands and her heart was beating too fast to be safe.

"Penelope?" Came a confused voice. Penny looked up at Joe Walker, not sure what to say. "Are you alright?" He asked kneeling down next to her.

"I'm fine," she said in a pleasant, charming voice.

"Liar," he said with a smirk and sat down. "What happened?"

"Things just got real, really fast, and it put a bad taste in my mouth," she said with a tight lipped smile. Joe nodded, like he understood. He did understand, Penny knew that much about him.

"Let's go do something," he said, not asking anymore questions.

"Like what?" She asked amused.

"Climb a mountain," he said standing up and laughing.

"Let's start smaller," Penny said with a smile. "Picnic?" She suggested and Joe sighed.

"Fine, I'll settle," he told her. "But let's climb a mountain someday together," he said and she grinned.

"We can hike up in the morning, make camp by midday, stay the night," she mused and he nodded. "Just us or are we bringing friends?" She asked and he thought about it.

"We'll bring Joey," he said. "He's always fun to have around when you tell ghost stories," Joe said and Penny smiled.

"Do you think anyone else would camp with us?" She asked and Joe shook his head.

"Oh hell no, not these rich kids," he said and she shook her head laughing at him.

"You me and Joey," Penny said and grinned. "The three of us cuddled up under the Michigan sky," she mused. "Sounds like a wet dream if I ever heard one," she said and laughed. Joe rolled his eyes and sighed.

"We'll have good time," Joe promised. "The three of us." Penny smiled at Joe and nodded, knowing he was right.

"Yeah," Penny agreed. "We will."


End file.
